Decurling device



C. J. BECK DEJURLING DEVICE Feb. 9, 1937.

2 sheets sheet 1 Original Filed Qci. 24, 1929 Feb. 9,1937- c. J. BECKDECURLING DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Oct. 24, 1929 rlllPatented F ch. 9, 19.37

UNITE STATES DEOURLING DEVICE Charles J. Beck, Philadelphia. Pa Originalapplication bctober 24, 1929, Serial No.

Divided and this application March '1, 1934, Serial No. 714,513

5. cram. (on. 92-40) application will be fully disclosed hereinafter,-

reference being had to the accompanying draw ings, of which:

Fig. l is a side elevation;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation; and

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation taken on the line 3-3, Fig. 1.

Wall paper, for example, as it is delivered from the machine whichprints the design thereon is wound in rolls of suitable size, sometimeswith the design face outermost, other times with the design faceinnermost. .These rolls, if to be cut into sample sheets, are thenplaced on a suitable support at the feeding and cutting end of themachine and so disposed on the support that the plain side of the web isdelivered uppermost to the machine.

In order to accurately position the identifying data on each sample, itis essential that the sheet be delivered to the printing mechanism in asubstantially flat condition, and paper of this kind 7 after having beenrolled has a natural tendency to curl when drawn from the roll.

In order to remove such curl' from the web, I have provided at thereceiving end of the machine a curl-removing mechanism from which theweb travels'to a feeding mechanism. The

feeding mechanism delivers the continuous. web to a cutting unit whichis adapted to cut the said web into sheets of uniform predeterminedlengths,

the side frames i0, Ill, are trunnions l2, I? whichproject from theopposite ends of and'rotatably support a guide rqll l3 over which thecontinuous web X is adapted to pass.

Spaced apart from and extending substantially parallel to the roll I3 isa second roll Hi, which is rigidly'secured to a shaft i5 rotatablymounted in bearings i5a, I501 formed in the side frame members it.

Intermediate and substantially parallel to the rolls i3 and It is a rolll6 having trunnions ll rotatably mounted in grooves or slots Ha, Haformed in the side frames I0, 00.

Above and. below and substantially parallel with the roll it are locateddecurling blades [8 and I9 respectively. Ihe upper decurling blade I 8is secured at its opposite ends to arms 20, 20

which project laterally from collars 2|, 2| which are secured to theupper ends of rods 22, 22 respectively. The rods 22, 22 are slidablymounted in bearing lugs 23 and it formed on the inside oi the sideframes l0, l0 respectively.

The lower decurling blade I9 is secured to collars25, 25 which areadjustably fastened to the slidemods 22 by means of set screws 26. Theblades i8 and iii are disposed in planes substantially at right angleswith respect to each other, and the plane of each being disposed at anangle with respect to the axes of the slide bars 22, 22

and each blade is provided with a beveled edge adapted to be broughtinto an operating position between the adjacent surfaces of the rolls' Ii and i0 respectively.

Axial movement of the slide rods 22, 22 to bring the desired. decurlingblade into operative position is efiected by means of a rock shaft 21rotatably mounted in the side frames l0, l0 and provided with levers 28,28 to the opposite ends of which are connected links 29, 29. Theopposite end of each link 29 is pivotally connected to a collar 30secured to the lower end of a corresponding slide bar 22.

When operating upon a web which has been .rolled withtheplain sideoutermost the decurling blade!!! is employed in the manner illustratedin Fig. 1. The paper or web passing over the upper surface of the rolll6 and under the beveled edge of the decurling blade l8, thence over theupper surface of the adjacent roll l4 which tends to produce a curl inthe paper in a direction opposite to the natural curl therein I whichbalances the said natural curl and causes '1 the sheet to lie flat.

When operating with a web which has been rolled with the plain surfaceinnermost the decurling blade 19 is employed, the web then passing fromthe roll I3 under the roll l6 over the beveled edge of the blade i9 andunder the roll blade 19 into such a position that the roll I6 is engagedthereby'and is raised slightly to bring its trunnion l1 out of thebottom of the slots 11a, whereupon the roll I 6 rests upon the paperbeing drawn over the beveled edge of the blade l9 to hold the paper downagainst said blade, whereupon the curl. is removed from the paper.

The outer end of the shaft 21 is provided with a lever 31 having alaterally extending pin 32 which is adapted to enter either of a seriesof notches 33, 34, and 35 extending outwardly from a slot 36 formed in ahead 31 adjustably mounted on the threaded end 39 of arod 40, theopposite end of the rod 40 being rotatably mounted in a bearingsupported by one of the side frames at the delivery end of the machine,a hand wheel being provided on the end of the'adiusting rod 40 by meansof i which the rod may be rotated thereby moving the head 31 axially ofsaid rod by means of the threads 39 thereon co-operating with threadsformed in a collar portion 43 of the head 31.

Movement of the head 31 rocks the shaft 21 in a manner to increaseordecrease the degree of the angle formed in the paper by the decurlingblade which happens to be functioning.

In order to throw one of the decurling blades out of operationv and tothrow the other of the blades into operating position the head 31 israised by grasping the finger grip 44 thereof which releases the pin .32in the lever 31 from the notch in the head 31 which is occupied thereby,and by grasping the handle 45, which forms part of the lever 3|, theshaft 21 may be rocked to bring the pin 32 into line with one of theother notches in the head 31 which brings the desired curling blade intoan operative position with respect to the rolls l4 and I9.

From the guide roll [4 a web X passes over the top of a; feed roll whichis secured to a shaft 5| rotatably mounted in bearings 52 formed inbrackets 53, 53 which are secured to the side frames I of the machine.

, Power may be applied to the shaft 15 of the. roll l4 in any suitablemanner, and in the present caseunder conditions hereinafter noted thisshaft is driven from a rotary shaft 231 of the machine to which thedecurling device is attached.

when the web X is being fed over the top of the rolls l3, l4 and IS withthe decurling blade I8 operating between the rolls l4 and 19, the roll14 is permitted to rotate freely, but when the Paper is being deliveredover the top of the roll I3 and under theerolls l4 and 15 with thedecurl- The [gear wheel as; is adapted to be brought into mesh with ordisengaged from the gear wheel 261 for the purpose of driving the roll14 or for permitting the same to run free as above noted.

. In order to permit of such manipulatioh of the gear wheel 299 the saidgear is adapted to be moved axially of .the stud 299 on which it isrotatabiy mounted, means being provided for locking the gear in eitherits'operative'or its inoperative position, such means. being shown indetail in Fig. 3, wherein the stud 299 is provided with a pair ofcircumferential grooves 300 and "I and the hub 302 of the gear 293 isprovided I versing the direction 261 and 291, but when the detent 304 isriding in the groove 300 the gear wheel 298 is then in mesh with boththe gear 291 and the gear wheel 291, whereby the roll 14 is powerdriven.

The operator by watching the sheets as they come through the machine mayby operating the control rod 40 move the decurling blade to a positionto place a greater counter-curl in the paper to offset the natural curlthereof.

1 claim:

1. In a machine. for cutting sheets from a continuous and rolled webhaving a tendency to curl when unrolled and for printing upon the cutsheets, the combination of a feeding unit, and a decurling unit, saiddecurling unit comprising a roll adapted to receive the web initially, asecond roll intermediate the receiving roll and the feeding unit andaround which the web is adapted to pass, a decurling roll disposedbetween the intermediate. roll and the receiving roll, a pair ofdecurling blades spaced apart and disposed respectively at oppositesides ofthe decurling roll, and means for moving the decurling blades tobring one edge of one of said blades into a position disposed in theangle formed between the peripheries of the intermediate and decurlingrolls.

2. In a machine for cutting sheets from a continuous and rolled webhaving a tendency to curl when unrolled and for printing upon the cutsheets, the combination of a feeding unit, and a decurling unit,said,decurling unit comprising a roll adapted to receive the webinitially, a second roll intermediate the receiving roll and the feedingunit and around which the web is adapted to pass, a decurling rol-ldisposed between the intermediate roll and the receiving roll a Pair ofde-.- curling blades spaced apart and disposed respectively at oppositesides of the decurling roll, means for moving the decurling blades tobring one edge of one of said blades into a position 1115- posed in theangle formed between the peripheries of the intermediate and decurlingrolls, and

closely disposed parallel rolls over the peripheries of which a webpasses, a pair of decurling blades parallel to and disposed at oppositesides respectively of said rolls opposite the spaces formed by andbetween the peripheries of said closely disposed rolls, means formaintaining said blades in fixed positions between said rolls and meansfor selectively, pressing said blades into said spaces to bend the webpassing across said space into said space at an acute angle around oneedge of the selected blade.

4. A decurling device comprising a pair of closely disposed parallelrolls over the peripheries of which a web passes, a pair of decurlingblades parallel to and disposed at opposite sides respectively of saidrolls opposite the spaces formed by and between the peripheries of saidclosely disposed rolls, means for pre: singone of said blades into oneof said spaces to'bend the web passing across said space into said spaceat an acute angle around one edge of the blade, and mean for reof pressto remove the one 7 2,070,605 blade from its occupied space and forpressing the closely disposed parallel rolls over the peripheries ofwhich a web passes, a pair oi'decurling blades parallel to and disposedat opposite sides respectively of said rolls opposite the spaces formedby and between the peripheries of said closely disposed rolls, means forpressing one of said blades into one of said spaces to bend the webpassing across said pace into said space at an acute angle around oneedge of the blade, means for reversing the direction of press to removethe one blade from its occupied space and for pressing the other 01'said blades into the second of the spaces formed by and between theperipheries of said rolls, and means for minutely varying the extent ofpress ing of said blades into said openings in accordance withvariations in the extent of curl in the web.

CHARLES J. BECK.

